Three Guys
by Inali Grimalkin
Summary: "In every girls life there will always be those three guys...The one she loves, the one she hates, and the one she can't get enough of, and in the end they're all the same guy." Serenity gets paired up with a mentor as a school project and feelings arise.
1. Introduction

Serenity listened, or at least pretended to listen, as her teacher announced that a few of the middle and high schools of Domino city were going to be participating in a "mentoring program." Basically, from what she heard, each of them would be paired with an older student from a different school. The program was anonymous for some reason or another but they could choose to say who they were if both parties wanted to. At the end of the school year the schools that were involved - the teacher said which ones, but Serenity was absorbed in a drawing she was doing at the back of her notebook - would be meeting up and holding a "Spring Formal." For the length of the program the participants could talk about whatever they wanted; homework help, family problems or even duel monsters. Serenity held back a giggle about that, she could bet that if Joey's school was involved that's all his partner would hear about. She stopped drawing, closing her notebook and trying to look like she had been paying attention the entire time when her teacher passed, handing her a folded piece of paper.

Serenity looked around as the other girls in her class opened theirs and were speculating on what their partner would be like. She opened hers as well and found only an email on it, nothing else. She supposed it was so they couldn't judge their partners based on their gender or anything. With a small sigh Serenity turned back to her notebook. Part of her wanted to join in with the other girls but she didn't know how, so she stuck to what she knew and that was drawing. She had worried she'd lost her one joy when she started to go blind, but now that her sight was better than ever she found she hadn't lost a thing. She took a quick glance at the clock and saw that school was nearly over. Quickly she finished her drawing and held it up slightly to admire her work. It had begun with a simple doodle but as she let her mind wander it turned into a small dragon looking to the distance. She might colour it when she got home, black with red eyes, if she remembered correctly that was one of Joey's favourite cards. With a smile she packed up her things and as her classmates walked in groups of three or four, Serenity found herself walking alone, her mind lost in thought, trying to imagine what her partner was like.

* * *

"I'm home!" Serenity called as she kicked off her shoes and headed to the kitchen where her mother was preparing dinner. "What are you making?" She asked, peering around. Receiving no answer Serenity looked up at her mother and saw that she was listening to something on her phone's earpiece. Her mother told her to go and do her homework; she'd call her down when diner was ready. Serenity held in a sigh and headed up the stairs to her room. One thing she loved about her house was, because of the way it was laid out, the entire upstairs was her bedroom. It was the biggest room of the house, even with the slightly slanted ceiling, and she suspected her mother gave it to her as an excuse to not spend time with her, though she always said she wanted to give her privacy.

Serenity dropped her bag on the floor and headed over to the desk where her laptop sat. She turned it on and, as she waited for it to start up, she looked at the pictures that sat framed on her desk. There was one of her family, before the divorce, and two pictures from the Battle City tournament that had taken place some time ago. The first picture was a shot of her and Joey and the second one was a group shot of her with Joey's friends that the younger Kaiba had taken for them. He was a sweet kid and she hoped he didn't turn into his brother. She didn't know much about the older Kaiba, she had only met him the once, but Joey didn't like him and she trusted Joey's judgment on people. If Joey hated him, there was a good reason and she found herself hating him too. That was the one thing she didn't like about the picture, in the background you could see the older Kaiba. He had been walking past and had happened to glance at them right as the picture was snapped. She pushed the negative thoughts from her head and typed in her password for the laptop. She really had no reason to password protect her computer; she just did it out of habit.

As she opened her email she wondered if Joey's school was part of the program, if she'd been listening she'd know. If it was she hoped she got Téa or Yugi as her partner, they were easy to talk to and she really liked them. Of course it would probably be better if she didn't get anyone she knew as her partner. It was going to be hard enough talking to someone; if she had problems she didn't want the person to be able to tell Joey. Besides, she saw Téa a fair bit. Once a week or so the two of them would meet up with Mai and have a girl's day. It was nice having friends, even if they were really her brother's friends and she didn't have any at her school. Serenity pulled the paper out of her pocket and taped it on the desk so she wouldn't lose it. After staring at it long enough she typed a message to Blue_Eyes (at) domino . net.

_Dear Blue_Eyes, _

_I've been assigned your partner for this "mentoring" thing our schools are doing. I'm not exactly sure what I'm supposed to talk to you about, guess we'll have to just see what happens. I know we have the option of saying who we are but I'd rather we just refer to each other by code names or our emails. It'll be easier to talk that way I think. _

_Silent_Serenity_Love (at) icemailer . com _

_P.S What's the Blue Eyes for? Are you a Frank Sinatra fan?_

Serenity hit the send button and began doing homework. While she kept telling herself that it was just a dumb assignment her eyes kept glancing up at the screen to see if she had any new messages. She had finished a good portion of her work by the time her mother called her down for dinner, with a last glance at the screen Serenity got up and went down to eat.

Her mother asked her how school was, as she did every night. Serenity looked at her plate and pushed the peas around aimlessly before replying.

"Nothing much, got an assignment in health class," she said looking up.

Ms. Wheeler nodded and asked what sort of assignment it was, but before Serenity could reply her mother's cell phone rang. Ms. Wheeler looked at the call ID and answered the phone, after a short but heated discussion that Serenity ignored her mother hung up and quickly finished her dinner. As she ran to get her coat she apologized to her daughter and told her she'd be home late. Serenity waved to her goodbye with a smile on her face, but after she was out the door her smile fell. Serenity sat at the table and finished her dinner alone, as she usually did. Her mother was a public relations executive for Kaiba Corp and the real reason she hated Kaiba. Her mother was almost always on the phone because her job required her to be aware of how the company was being perceived in the media and she specialized in damage control. She had to answer tough questions about layoffs and scandals that were usually just rumors. It seemed as though she was working overtime after Battle City, but Serenity didn't care _why_ her mother was gone, just that she was. She washed the dishes and headed back up to her room, leaving the living room light on for her mother like she did almost every night. Serenity changed into her pajamas and sat back down at her desk to finish what was left of her homework when she noticed she had received an email.

_Dear Silent_Serenity_Love, _

_I agree we should keep our identities a secret. In the mean time you can call me Seth. I've been told that I am supposed to ask you if there is anything you want to talk about. _

_Seth _

_P.S. Sure, let's go with that._

Serenity read the message a few times wondering what she should use for her name. She didn't want to use anything that sounded too much like her real name. She looked around her room trying to find something. She paused, looking at her bookshelf, but shook her head. It would be too obvious an alias if she told him she wanted to be called Hermione or Kitty. Kitty, that's it, she though as she turned to look at her cat sleeping soundly on her bed.

"You won't mind if I borrow your name, course you won't. You're my pretty kitty," Serenity said out loud, the Egyptian Mau looked up for a moment before yawning and going back to sleep with a purr.

_Seth, _

_It feels weird talking about my problems to a stranger but I guess its nice having someone other than my cat to talk to. My parents got divorced when my brother and I were small. For reasons I never knew they decided to separate us. I think they did it to spite one another. My brother lived with our dad until he died last year. He lives on his own now, not wanting to live with Mom and I. Probably a good thing cause Mom is almost never home. She's a PR and they're always busy. It gets lonely. I wish I could talk to her, get her to spend time with me like she did when I was little, but I'm so tired of being the only one who's trying. It seems like after my operation, once she knew I was going to be alright, she stopped paying attention to me. _

_Kisa_

Serenity hit send and put her finished homework back into her school bag. She went downstairs to brush her teeth and looked out the window to see if she could see her mother's car coming down the street. With a sigh she locked the front door and heading back to her room, taking her laptop to bed with her and waited for another reply. Soon enough that little message icon popped up and she found her heart beat quickening, she had never told anyone how she felt before and wasn't sure how they'd respond to it.

_Kisa, _

_I'm afraid I'm of no help on the parent troubles, mine died years ago. I do, however, understand what it's like to be alone. I think that's the real point behind this stupid assignment;to give each person at least one person to talk to without fear. I do know a little something about PRs, they're crucial to a company, if your mother is as busy as you say she is then she's doing a good job and because of her hundreds of people will still have jobs. It's late, and we have school tomorrow. You should get some sleep. Good night, I'll talk to you again tomorrow. _

_Seth _

And with those simple words a tradition was born.

* * *

**So, here it is. This story is a lot of firsts for me. My first Yu-Gi-Oh, silentship, and my first story that is supposed to be fluff filled. I want to thank Peacewish for inspiring me to try doing something like this. It was her story Coffee Girl that really made me want to try my hand at one myself. This story is also for FireEdge who got me supporting this ship to begin with and for being the best test audience ever. The emails are parodies of shaw, hotmail and yahoo. Figured I'd point that out in case anyone missed it lol. I know it doesn't follow cannon events, but most of my knowledge comes from wiki and the abridged series so just ignore the time line and pretend it makes sense... EDIT: I did some tweaking with the ages to give some time between the show events and the fic. The Japanese age differences are used (Serenity is 3 years younger than Joey, Seto is the same age as Joey not 2 years older, etc) but the English names were used simply because those are the ones that I know, except for Serenity's mom. She get's the Japanese last name cause I figure after the divorce she'd go back to her maiden name, and since as far as I an tell she doesn't have a given name she is now called Kaiya. So yes, Kaiya Kawii is Serenity's mom *nod*.**

**Also, I know reviewing can be a sensitive topic. I won't hold my story hostage or demand reviews, but I do tend to update faster because I have the motivation to do so when I get reviews. A lot of people have trouble leaving good reviews, and aren't sure what to write. On my profile I have a lovely guide to reviewing borrowed from Peacewish's livejournal. Please don't hesitate to check it out.**


	2. Begining to Need Him

Every night at 9 o'clock she would sign into her instant messenger and they would talk. Sometimes they talked about school and interests and other times they'd talk about problems. Seth confessed that he had a "very important after school job" that often left him very stressed. While he never said what it was he did, he told her that talking to her, even if they were talking about something ridiculous - like what would happen if card games evolved to being played on motorcycles - eased his stress.

And For Serenity, she found that being alone wasn't so bad. She may not have a lot of friends, but neither did he. Her mother may hardly ever be around, but she began to notice that she lived each day looking forward to their messages and at some point realized she couldn't get enough and wanted to meet him.

It was early December, and she was about to tell Seth about how it looked like she'd be spending the holidays with her brother, because her mom was bound to be working, when she heard a knock on her bedroom door. Surprised she turned around and saw her mother standing in the doorway; she never came upstairs before now.

"What is it Mom?" Serenity asked as she closed her laptop.

"Serenity dear," Kaiya said, sitting down gently on the edge of her daughter's bed. "Mr. Kaiba has given me some time off for the holidays. Now I know you were planning on going to see Joey, but how about if he comes here for Christmas? We can be a family again." She smiled hopefully as she took Serenity's hands into her own.

"But, you don't like when Joey's over. You say he reminds you too much of Dad," Serenity argued, not wanting to let herself believe that her mother was actually making an effort. She'd only be let down later.

"I know, but it's time I realized that he's not your father. Now, I'm going to go shopping for groceries to make dinner for the three of us, any requests?" She asked standing up and heading towards the door.

"That pie you used to make when I was little? The chocolate one," Serenity said, looking up with a hopeful expression.

"Anything," her mother smiled as she left the room. "I'll be back in a bit." Serenity listened to her mother leave the house and quickly opened her laptop deleting everything she had previously typed.

_Seth,_

_ Guess what? Ok, I won't make you guess. Kaiba gave my mom a few days off work for the holidays and she's going to have my brother over for dinner. I'm so happy! So what are your holiday plans?_

_Kisa_

Serenity looked at the clock, only 8:30; she still had some time before he'd be signing in to reply. She hit send with a smile and picked up Kisa to dance around the room with her. She was in such a good mood she wished she could go Christmas shopping, but she already had her gifts for her friends and family. Suddenly she remembered she didn't have anything for Seth. Putting Kisa back down on the bed, her good mood faded a bit. It wasn't like she could actually give him a present. She looked around her room for an idea; she really wanted to do something for him.

She glanced out her window and suddenly it hit her. From her room she had an amazing view of the city; for once she was glad she lived on the top of a hill. She picked up her sketch pad and began drawing what she saw. She was glad the sun set so early, she didn't have to worry about the shadows changing and the lights gave everything a nice surreal touch. Over the trees and smaller towers she could see the Kaiba Corp logo, she drew it as clearly as she could, not that it was hard. The top floor of the building and the logo were lit up bright as day.

She was so absorbed in her drawing and her thoughts that she didn't even hear her computer chirp with a new message.

* * *

Finally she put her inks down and looked at her work. It wasn't perfect and the lines smudged a little, but it gave it a nice effect. The Kiba Corp building loomed above the rest just like how she saw it from her window and she thought she captured the frost covered trees perfectly. Pleased, she turned to her instant messenger and saw a series of messages from Seth. The first said he was so happy for her and each message sounded more and more worried about why she wasn't answering. Now that she was out of the trance drawing put her in she could hear her mother downstairs, she looked at the clock almost afraid of what it would say.

She gasped, it was 9:48, where had the time gone? Quickly she pulled the laptop to her and typed a reply apologizing and explaining that she had gotten caught up in something and didn't notice the time.

_Seth: It's alright, you just had me worried. What had you so distracted?_

_Kisa: It's a surprise ;) Besides you never answered my question._

_Seth: My brother and I go and see a movie. We'll usually cook something together afterwards__;__ I think the plan for this year is teriyaki roast chicken and cake. I hope you know that I hate surprises._

_Kisa: I'll bet you like this one._

Serenity wondered why he'd make teriyaki roast chicken; it didn't seem like the kind of thing a teenage boy and their younger brother would make. It was something housewives with big families made. She didn't say anything about it though. They messaged back and forth a little while longer before Seth said it was time for bed. Even though they were on holidays Seth insisted bed time stay the same since he had to work more often. She said good night to Seth and for the first time in a long time gave her mother a hug and kiss good night.

As she lay in bed, listening to Kisa purr, Serenity felt bad for Seth. He was only a few years older than she was, but he never got to act like it. He was always saying how much he had to work and how the only free time he got was a few hours with his brother every day and the time he spent talking to her. It made sense; it was just him and his brother so obviously he had to work hard.. As she began to drift off she promised that next Christmas she'd have Seth take a few days of work so he could enjoy being a kid.

* * *

Christmas morning Serenity woke up early. As she got out of bed she could hear the clock ticking downstairs and Joey's snores from the couch he had spent the night on. She had scanned the picture onto her computer the night before and, as she pulled her laptop towards her, she attached the file to her message to Seth. She hit send and with a smile went to her mirror to brush her hair. Not even five minutes later her computer chirped at her. Serenity turned and looked at it, she hadn't expected Seth to be up yet, it was only 8 in the morning.

_Kisa did you draw this? It's amazing. Thank you. It really made my day._

Serenity read the message a few times and typed back a response. The message was short, but she had a feeling that Seth didn't know what else to say. He only ever spoke of his brother so she assumed he probably didn't get gifts or things like that very often. She smiled and closed her laptop, she feeling a little strange. She sat down on her bed and picked up Kisa to cuddle. She felt like she needed him, and he needed her too. It was stupid, she knew, to be thinking that. After all they had only known each other for a few months, but she could tell that he didn't have many people that he could talk to and her life had seemed to be getting better since they started emailing.

"Ren? You up yet?" Joey called up the stairs, startling her. She hurried downstairs and gave her brother a hug.

"I'm surprised you're up, I expected you to be sleeping for another two hours at least," she teased, letting Kisa go after being squished in the hug.

"Not when I get to open presents I don't," he replied, pulling her to the tree where their mother sat with her coffee, smiling. As Serenity sat and watched her family interact in the way that she had always wished, she smiled. She couldn't help but feel as if Seth had brought this happiness into her life. True, when Joey came yesterday for dinner the air had been a little stiff between him and their mother, but now it was almost as if he had never left and that it had been the three of them all along.

* * *

They had decided that cooking a big meal for just the three of them would be a waste so Ms. Kawaii announced she was going to get take out while Serenity attempted to teach Joey how to make chocolate chip cookies. A few hours later Serenity and Kaiya were teasing Joey about his slightly blackened cookies as they watched a _Christmas Carol_ together. After the movie finished, Joey said his goodbyes. While he was in no rush to return to their father's house he needed to work early the next morning. As he got ready to leave Serenity remembered something she had forgot to ask.

"Joey, are you doing the mentoring program with your school?" she asked as she helped him carry his gifts home.

"The one between the university and some of the local high schools? Yeah I am. I think the head chose students who didn't have a full course load; I've only got two classes so I had time. Why?"

"Oh, my school is doing it too. Do you know who your partner is?"

"Yeah it's thus guy from Trinity High, nice kid. He's a big duel monsters fan. What?"

"Nothing," she replied, shaking her head. She had smiled when Joey mentioned duel monsters, did she know her brother or what. "I know your university is really big, but you wouldn't happen to know anyone there named Seth would you?"

"No, can't say that I do Sis," he said after thinking for a moment.

"It's probably a fake name, I go by Kisa with my partner," she said as she saw Joey's apartment at the end of the street. "Are Téa and the others part of it?"

"You used the cat's name?" Joey asked with a laugh. "Nah, Téa and Yugi have too many classes they're taking. Tristan has a partner, a guy from your school I think. Don't know about Duke, I think he has a girl from Trinity, but I'm not sure. Well this is my stop; it was nice having Christmas with the family. Much as I think Kaiba's a jerk it was nice of him to give Ma some time off for family. C'mre," he said, pulling her into a hug. He took the bag she had been carrying for him and headed inside his building leaving Serenity to walk back home. It was only 8:00 so she would be home in time for Seth.

When she got home she saw her mother putting some of the cooled cookies in a tin box instead of the cookie jar.

"What're doing?" She asked, coming to stand next to her.

"Well, I thought it was very good of Mr. Kaiba to give me these past few days off. If you don't mind I was thinking of taking some of these cookies to him as a thank you." Serenity thought about it, she didn't like Kaiba, but she supposed a few cookies as thanks wouldn't hurt. It was the season of giving after all.

"Sure, sounds fine. I'm going to go get ready for bed, I'm tired," she said as she headed to the door.

"Oh, before you go, would you like to come to work with me? I have a meeting in the morning and would love if you could give the cookies to Mr. Kaiba for me. You're going out with Téa and Mai right? It's on the way." Serenity stopped and held back a groan, true the mall was very close to Kaiba Corp, but her generosity when it came to Kaiba had limits.

"Alright," she said with a small sigh. "Good night Mom."

Once she was upstairs, Serenity logged into her messenger and told Seth all about her day and asked how his had been. She didn't mention that she would have to visit her mom's boss the next day, she suspected he was probably tired of listening to her complain about him. They messaged for a while before, as usual, Seth told her it was bedtime. As she lay down in bed she couldn't help but wonder if Seth lay in his bed thinking of her as he fell asleep each night like she did.

* * *

**Okay, sorry it took so long to update. I've had so much on my plate. To those who are reading After there was Oma and Shu also, I had the chapter mostly written when I accidentally deleted it. I'm waiting for the inspiration o come back again. Now this chapter was mostly written late at night as I tried, and failed, to have it up by Christmas day (only 2 days late ^-^"). I did some revision on the first chapter when it came to ages and Serenity's mom's name (I was getting really tired of calling her Serenity's mom or Ms. Wheeler and there's plot around her name too, promise). I don't know when chapter three will be up, probably around New Year (probably a little after if I keep on track). And please review, I posted a handy little guide on reviewing etiquette written by Peacewish for those who just aren't sure what they should say.**

**Aside from that, Happy Holidays everyone and thank you for reading my story ^-^**


	3. A Tough Decision

Serenity woke to being gently shaken.

"Mom?" She asked as she sat up and groggily rubbed her eyes.

"Come on Sweetheart," Kaiya said as she opened the blinds to let the early morning light in. "Get dressed and come down for breakfast so we can go." Serenity flinched a little as the sun hit her eyes, but she got up. She wished her room faced west. Once her mother, satisfied she wouldn't go back to sleep, had left Serenity got dressed. She decided to wear what Joey had given her. He said Mai had picked it out so she figured the older woman would be happy to see her wear it.

A little while later Serenity came down the stairs wearing a favourite faded blue jean skirt and the light blue, almost silver, blouse she had received. The blouse was made from a light, silky material so she wore a white cashmere sweater and white leggings to keep warm. The sweater had been a gift from her mother and she loved the way the blue and white fit together so well.

"Oh Serenity, you look beautiful," her mother sighed as she handed her a couple pieces of buttered toast. "You should wear your hair up more often," Kaiya added as she playfully tugged Serenity's high pony tail. Serenity sat at the table and ate her breakfast with a small smile… She had missed this side of her mother.

In no time the two were in the car and Serenity chatted away, telling her mother about her plans for the day. The entire time Mrs. Kawaii didn't touch her phone once, and gave her full attention to her daughter. When they pulled into the Kaiba Corp parking lot Serenity felt her smile fade a little, she had almost forgotten why she was in the car in the first place.

Mother and daughter went inside and headed towards the elevators, Mrs. Kawaii briefly greeting people as they walked by.

"Now Serenity, I have to go meet with a reporter for an article on Mr. Kaiba, here's my key," Kaiya said, taking the small key off her lanyard. "Put that in the key hole there and hit the top button. It'll take you to the executive floor. Just tell the secretary, Mrs. Aizawa, you're my daughter and give her the key. She'll return it to me later," she told her as they rode the elevator alone together. "I'll see you tonight, probably be home around seven. Have fun today," she gave Serenity a quick hug and kiss before getting off on the 10th floor. Serenity watched her mother go as the doors closed and then did as she was instructed. She smiled when she noticed the executive floor was the 13th, if there was one thing Kaiba wasn't it was superstitious.

"Mrs. Aizawa?" Serenity asked as she got off the elevator and headed towards the desk next to the great double door. "I'm Kaiya Kawaii's daughter. My mother told me to leave this key with you and give something to Mr. Kaiba."

"I thought so… you look so much like your mother did when she was your age. We went to college together back in the day," the woman said with a smile as she took the key. "I'll phone and make sure he's not in the middle of anything." Serenity nodded though she wondered why phone when she was right next to the door.

As she waited she looked around the room. It was well sized, taking up at least a third of the Kaiba Corp top floor not counting the elevator. It was decorated simply, like a modern hotel lobby with a couple couches and a coffee table. There was also a door next to the elevator which Serenity assumed led to a bathroom.

"He can see you," Mrs. Aizawa said bringing Serenity's attention back to her. "Just don't take too long, he has a lot of files he needs to go over." She nodded and thanked Mrs. Aizawa as she headed towards the door, opening it timidly and going to stand just inside the large room.

Kaiba was looking intently at his computer screen, reading something if his rapidly moving eyes was any indication. Serenity hated when people interrupted her when she as reading so she remained quiet figuring he'd greet her when he finished. She looked over his shoulder out the window that took up the entire back wall. She could make out the park and knew she was probably looking towards her house, not that she could see it though. She smiled at the thought that she had drawn the same view from the opposite perspective as she glanced around the rest of the room. It was simply furnished, like the lobby, with few personal items visible, a small door that led to a private bathroom she assumed and only a few chairs other than the ones at the desk. Serenity looked back at Kaiba and realized he was now staring at her. She blushed, wondering if he had been staring at her while she gaped at his office.

"I'm sorry to bug you Mr. Kaiba, but my mom sent me," she said with a small bow, allowing her bangs to fall into her face to hide the blush. She stood straight again and saw that he was still staring at her, not saying a word. "Um, my mom is Kaiya Kawaii and she wanted me to give you these as thanks for giving her time off for the holidays." Serenity walked across the room and placed the red and gold tin on his desk. "I baked them yesterday, they're chocolate chip." Serenity played with the long pieces of bang that fell in her face, his staring was really starting to make her uncomfortable and his silence was unnerving. _He must be angry with me for bothering him. _"Well, I'll leave you be. Have a happy New Year Mr. Kaiba." He nodded and Serenity left as quickly as she could without seeming rude. "I'm sorry for disturbing you," she said, stopping at Mrs. Aizawa's desk again.

"It's no trouble. You have a good New Year and feel free to stop by again." Serenity nodded and waved goodbye before returning to the elevator. She didn't need the key to hit the other buttons so she hit the main floor button and rode down, stopping at floors now and then to pick up or drop off KC employees. She thought of Mrs. Aizawa, she was a really sweet lady, completely different from Kaiba who had acted nothing like how she remembered from Battle City.

Getting off at the main floor she opened her phone and sent Téa and Mai a text telling them she'd be at the mall soon. As she started walking, her hood up and her hands buried in her pockets, she wondered more at Kaiba's unusual behavior. She had expected him to tell her to leave the cookies on his desk and get out or make a joke at her brother's expense. Although, he did employ her mother so he probably wouldn't care about Joey. That was nice of him, even though he had a problem with one member of the family he didn't extend it to the rest. If he did he never would've hired her mother as his PR. As for her, he probably only knew her as Joey's sister and Kaiya's daughter so it kinda made sense why he didn't say much. He didn't know her. He still could've said something, though, even just a simple "thanks." While Serenity still didn't like Kaiba much she found that she didn't hate him the way she used to. Maybe it was because he gave her mom time off, he didn't _have_ to do that, and he didn't demand as much time from her as he used to. Serenity sighed and shook all thoughts of him out of her head when she reached the mall and saw Téa and Mai waiting for her.

"You look great," Mai said, giving the younger girl a hug. "I knew that top would suit you."

"I knew I had you to thank, Joey never was very good at picking out girl clothes," Serenity joked as she turned to give Téa a hug too. "It's beautiful, I love it."

"You're here earlier than we thought you'd be," Téa commented as they began to window shop through the large mall.

"Yeah, my mom wanted me to drop something off at her boss' office since she had a meeting." No one really knew where Ms. Kawaii worked or what she did. Joey didn't want people to know that Kaiba paid his mom's salary and Serenity just didn't think it was important. Kaiba Corp was a big company, half of Domino city worked for him in some way. "The office isn't far from here so I rode with her and walked from there."

"That's not too bad, worked in your favour at least. So, tell us about your partner in the mentoring program," Téa said, holding up a dress to her in front of a mirror.

"Yeah what was his name again?" Mai asked as she gave an approving nod at Téa's dress. "Seth?" Serenity blushed a little but launched into a tale about how awkward he was during the first week of their exchange. When he opened up though, he was the sweetest guy ever. He listened to her and would talk her through her problems, giving advice without ever telling her _what_ to do, and he was just an all around great person to talk to. Mai and Téa both smiled. While Serenity had been talking they had gone to a few other shops and were now in the food court drinking milkshakes.

"Seems like you can't get enough of this guy," Téa noted as she put her drink down. "It's so sweet that you got paired together. I wonder what he's like in person, probably cute. When you meet up in the spring you'll have to introduce us."

"It sounds to me like Serenity might want to keep him all to herself. She's got a little crush on him already," Mai teased.

"I can't have a crush on him," Serenity protested as she stirred her milkshake, not looking them in the eye. "I don't even know what he looks like or of Seth is his real name."

"You don't have to. Internet daters fall in love and get married all the time. They talk online long before they ever meet in person." Serenity smiled and not to subtly changed the subject by asking Téa about her classes.

Mai drove Téa back to her apartment and then went to drop Serenity off at the theatre where she had a date with Tristan. As Serenity got out of the car and waved goodbye to her friend she found herself thinking. She knew Mai had only been teasing about her liking Seth, but what if she did? She went and stood just inside the theatre doors while she waited for Tristan. They didn't see each other often because of school and she wasn't sure where they stood. She liked Tristan a lot, but wasn't sure if they were dating and she'd been too shy to ask.

In no time she saw the familiar figure running towards her. Serenity smiled, his signature hairstyle is what always gave him away.

"I'm sorry I'm late," Tristan said between gasps of air. Serenity shook her head with a smile and handed him the bottle of water she kept in her bag.

"I was early, Mai drove me on her way to work. It's not your fault." Tristan took the water gratefully and drank deeply before smiling at her.

"Thanks," he said, handing back the bottle. "So which movie did you want to see?" Serenity looked at the listings. There was one that Seth had mentioned was really good. She hadn't seen the trailers for it yet, but he had just gone to see it with his brother.

"Inception?" she suggested "I heard from a friend that it was really good." Trist looked at her with a strange look on his face for a moment before looking at his watch.

"That one with Dicaprio? Sure, I didn't think it was your kind of movie," he commented as he paid for the tickets. The movie would start in half an hour, giving them plenty of time to get snacks and seats.

"Like I said," Serenity replied with a shrug. "A friend saw it a couple days ago and said it was really good." Tristan nodded and let it be as he ordered a large popcorn and two medium cokes. Serenity held back a twinge of annoyance; he didn't ask what she wanted or give her a chance to make a decision. She sighed inwardly and brushed it off, she should be happy he was treating her.

After they found their seats they still had at least 2o minutes before the movie would start.

"So Joey says you've got a partner for the mentoring program," Serenity said, trying to fill the silence. "What are they like?"

"Alright I guess," Tristan shrugged. "He goes to your school. I mostly help him out with homework and we've started talking about his university plans. Nothing personal though, we don't even use names. I think we talk, like, once a week, if that. What about you?"

"Oh, um my partner is alright. He helps me with homework and we do small talk, holidays and stuff you know? Nothing much, he seems like a nice guy," Serenity lied as she played with her straw wrapper. _ Is it weird that Seth and I are so close? Joey and his partner talk about duel monsters, but that's not exactly a personal subject._ "Are you going to go to the formal the schools are holding?"

Yeah, but only because I know you and Joey will be there. I might meet up with my partner to wish him luck, but otherwise I'm there for the Wheelers," he said with a laugh.

"Téa mentioned she wanted to come," Serenity replied, her stomach sinking for some reason. _Probably the coke, _she concluded. _I usually don't drink fizzy drinks, I prefer iced tea._

"Yeah I think the other students are allowed to go, it's being held at this huge ballroom pretty close to campus after all. The ones not involved in the program have to pay for a ticket though. Joey's thinking of bringing Mai and buying a ticket for her even though she's not a student. Oh hey, it's starting." Tristan turned away and watched the screen as the room darkened around them. Serenity looked at him for a moment longer then did the same.

The movie was amazing, the plot twists, the never knowing if it was real or not. At one point, Serenity glanced over at Tristan. He had been making that humming sound he did when he was trying to figure something out. She was a little surprised to see that his brow was furrowed in concentration. She shook her head a little and watched the rest of the movie. The open ending the film had was perfect, she would be able to wonder and think about it for days and she couldn't wait to tell Seth what she thought. As Tristan walked Serenity to her bus stop his annoyed voice broke into her thoughts.

"Well that sucked."

"What did?" Serenity asked. She had been so consumed with the thought of talking to Seth that she had all but forgotten about Tristan.

"The movie. It was all over the place and it was so hard to keep track of whose dream they were in. Was the ending even real or was it just another dream?" he vented in frustration.

"Tristan, it's supposed to be like that. Dom doesn't know if what he's living is real or not so it makes sense that we wouldn't. And it's an open ended film. It leaves it up to the viewer to decide if it was real or imagined. I think it's real though, like Dom's kids are his totem and in the dreams they never turn around, but in real life they do."

"That's stupid, he was obviously using his wife's totem. Why else would he have the top?"

"As a memento of his wife maybe? We never see what his totem was, but we know the top was hers. And they said only you can know the trick to the totem, if Dom was using it as his own totem why would other people know how it works?" Serenity argued, she was getting frustrated too. _Couldn't he at least be open to other possibilities?_ She was grateful when they had reached her stop and she saw her bus approaching. "That's my bus, I'll see you later okay?"

"Yeah, Joey said you were coming with us to the shrine on New Years," he leaned forwards and gave her a kiss on the lips just as the bus pulled to the stop. "See you time we have a date we'll go see a good movie," he called as she got on the bus and waved.

Sitting alone in the back, Serenity watched Tristan fade into the distance and touched her lips. She felt nothing. Well she felt her mouth obviously, but emotionally she felt nothing; friendship and gratitude because he had done so much for her over the years, but she wasn't sure if she liked him the way he liked her. She certainly didn't love him. She felt no butterflies in her stomach or any of the things that came with love. She looked out the window and watched the buildings pass by, and found herself thinking of Seth. She couldn't possibly love him, it was the same argument she had given to Mai. Yet, a small part of her argued that no one else understood her the way he did or could talk to her for hours given the chance.

* * *

"Serenity? Sweetheart, are you alright?" Kaiya asked, snapping Serenity out of her thoughts. She'd barely spoken all evening.

"Yeah, I'm just not feeling great," she lied.

"Go and sleep, you don't want to be sick on New Year. Joey and his friends are taking you to the shrine right?" Serenity nodded. As she was about to go upstairs her mother spoke again. "I forgot to tell you, Mr. Kaiba says the cookies were wonderful and that you seemed like a really sweet girl." Serenity frowned, he hadn't said anything and she had assumed he was mad, but he thought she was sweet? Maybe there was some other reason why he never talked.

"He seemed a little strange to me," she confessed.

"Oh, poor boy. It's hard to tell with him of course, but I thought he was being strange too. He was a little flushed when I spoke to him later, a fever I think. Stayed at work though, he's stubborn as a mule. Now go, bed." Serenity nodded and said goodnight, hiding a smile as she climbed the stairs. She was pretty sure no one had ever called Kaiba a 'poor boy.'

Once she was changed and had brushed her teeth Serenity closed her bedroom door and shut off the lights, except for her small bedside lamp. It was too early to talk to Seth, still almost an hour before he'd be online. She lay down on her bed, her laptop next to her, and finally was able to think.

She needed Seth… that was certain. There was no one else she could talk to the way she talked to him., Yeah, she liked him, she just couldn't say it out loud. He was an amazing person, how could she not, but did she love him, as Mai accused? How could she? No matter how much they talked, they'd really never met. She could pass him on the street and not even know it. There was also the matter of Duke and Tristan. She knew she didn't have feelings for Duke, though he still pursued her. She'd gone out with him a couple times, but there just wasn't that spark. And Tristan was Tristan. She felt like he was everything she should want in a guy, someone she could see herself spending a lifetime with, but she didn't think she was his girlfriend, they never said they were dating officially.

With a frustrated groan Serenity rolled over and looked out her window. She could see the Kaiba Corp building and, as usual, the top floor was still lit up. As she lay there, looking out her window and thinking, she was surprised to see the light go out. She sat up and looked at her clock, less than half an hour till Seth came on. Serenity pulled her computer towards her and sent him an email for him to read and reply to when he got on.

_Seth,_

_I was wondering if I could ask you for relationship advice. You see, I think I'm falling for someone, but I already have someone I'm sort of dating and I don't know if this new guy likes me and I don't know if I should stay with who I have cause I know he likes me or if I should break up with him. Please, I really need you for this one._

_Kisa_

Serenity lay back down, Seth offered advice, but he usually encouraged her to make her own choices and problem solve. That was great most of the time, she knew it was better than telling her what to do, but sometimes she just needed to hear someone else's point of view.

In no time at all, a little earlier than he usually came on, Serenity's computer chirruped at her. She bolted upright and opened the email, reading quickly.

_Kisa,_

_Well, I don't really have much experience when it comes to relationships so I can't say how good my advice will be, but I suppose it isn't really fair to the person you're with if you have feelings for someone else. You'll only end up hurting them later. I'd say end it with them and be honest instead of harbouring feelings for someone else and making two or more people unhappy in the end. Make sense? I hope everything works out for you. So tell me, how was your day today?_

_Seth_

* * *

**So, so sorry this took so long. I had wanted this up ages ago, but never had the time to type it all up. I'll try to get the next two chapters out ASAP, I have them mostly planned out so I just need to write them. So opinions on this chapter? Lemme know. I'm worried about Tristan, I don't know his character very well so let me know if I did justice. And I'm sorry if anyone hasn't seen _Inception_, I just saw it and redid Tristan's part for it. As usual, thanks for reading and please review. Let me know what you liked and didn't like about this chapter. Till next time ^-^  
**


	4. His Voice

Serenity woke just before dawn on New Year's day. Kaiba Corp was closed until the third of January like most businesses. So the night before Serenity and her mother had cleaned the whole house and made noodles together.

Serenity sat up and yawned. She was tired, having stayed up half the night worrying about the decision she'd have to make today.

Still in her pajamas, she watched the sun creep over the horizon out her bedroom window before getting ready. Mai and Joey would be picking her up soon. She changed into a komon kimono with her mother's help. As she got her shoes on, ready to leave, Serenity paused at the mirror. She hadn't wanted to wear the kimono, they were such a pain to wear sometimes, but Téa and Mai were wearing kimonos and insisted she do the same. Seeing her reflection Serenity couldn't help but smile. She had to admit the kimono looked really nice; the ocean blue silk with its little white flowers suited her and the snow white obi completed the look. It had belonged to her grandmother and Serenity found herself wondering what Seth would think of it.

A horn honked outside, snapping Serenity out of her thoughts.

"Bye Mom!" she called as she opened the door and waved goodbye. "I'll be home later." Kaiya nodded and waved as her daughter quickly left.

* * *

"Took ya long enough," Joey whined as Serenity slid into the backseat. She stuck her tongue out at him, but otherwise ignored him.

"Why's Joey driving?" she asked Mai, it was her car after all.

"It's too hard to drive wearing a kimono," the older woman replied as she turned around. Her kimono was a dark purple with a black and white obi. "Besides, he likes to 'be the man' and drive sometimes." Serenity giggled and watched the scenery go by out the window as the other two resumed whatever conversation they were having before she had joined them.

* * *

Soon enough they were at the shrine where everyone was already waiting for them. Téa had worn a crisp green and pink kimono like the other girls while the boys wore slightly dressier clothes than usual.

As everyone fell into their couples, Téa with Yugi and Mai with Joey, Serenity found herself walking in between Tristan and Duke. Why was it that she was always ending up with these two? Even though she had told Duke she wasn't interested he still hung around and made it clear he didn't want to just be friends.

As they waited in line to pray at the shine Serenity imagined Seth was there instead. She didn't know what he looked like of course so she only imagined what it would be like having him be the one who stood next to her. She imagined he'd be taller than her and have blue eyes. _I'll ask him when we talk next if he can tell me what he looks like,_ she decided.

Serenity opened her eyes when it was her turn to pray. She prayed that next year she'd be able to stand here with Seth, she prayed for good grades and she prayed that she would have the courage to do what she had to do next.

"Do you guys want to get charms and something to eat before we head home?" Téa asked as they watched the sun slowly creep its way higher in the sky. Official sunrise had been hours ago, but because of all the buildings they were only now able to fully see the sun.

"Yeah, I have a few charms I wanted to get and I'm getting a little hungry," Serenity said. The others nodded in agreement and headed towards the temple doors for their fortunes and charms. Serenity pulled her fortune and was happy to see good luck for the New Year, she needed it.

Next they bought their charms, Serenity bought a Gakugyojoju for herself, they were said to help students do well in school and on entrance exams. She had only planned on buying the one, but another caught her eye. The Shobaihanjo, for success in business and money matters. _Seth works a lot of hours and he said the company belonged to his father before he died. He probably needs one of these,_ she thought to herself and bought the charm as well, though she had no idea how she would give it to him.

"Hey Serenity, can I talk to you for a second?" Tristan asked softly. Serenity looked up at him, surprised. Did he know what she was going to say? She wasn't sure if she was ready, but Seth's advice came back to her so she nodded. "Hey guys, go ahead to the crepe stand, we'll meet you there," Tristan called and led her away from the crowds for privacy.

"So, um, I wanted to talk to you because we've been getting together for dates and stuff and yeah…" he said awkwardly, Serenity looked down at her feet, she felt so horrible doing this, but it had to be done.

"I actually wanted to talk to you about that too," she whispered.

"Oh, really? Um, you can go first then if you want."

"Tristan, you're a really sweet guy. I have fun with you, you're smart, funny and I know I could spend a lifetime with you contentedly-"

"I feel the same way, Serenity. I'm so glad we're on the same page-"

"I wasn't finished," Serenity said, cutting him off like he had done to her. Tristan went silent and waited, but wore a very bewildered look. "You're everything I should want or need in a person; you say all the right things at the right time… But, I don't think this is going to work out the way you want it to. I think we should just be friends. I'm sorry." Her heart was pounding, but there; she said it. Tristan continued to look confused for a second more, then his faces changed to an expression of understanding and then to one of hurt.

"But, you just said that you could spend the rest of your life with me happily, that I'm everything you want…."

"I- I know, it's just there's… someone else," she said softly, hating that she was doing this to him. It was for the best though. "And it isn't fair to you."

"It's not Duke is it?"

"Duke? God no," Serenity said with a shudder, earning a slight smile from Tristan.

"Well, whoever it is, I'd like to meet them some time. And who knows, if it doesn't work out, I'll be here."

* * *

A month passed, Serenity and Tristan still spoke and continued to be friends, but she could tell that he was still a little hurt that they weren't together; especially now that Valentine's Day was approaching. Serenity lay on her bed, waiting until it was late enough that she could email Seth. She wished she could give him a gift, she still had his charm on her desk, but he was adamant that they not meet yet.

With a sigh she rolled over, Seth was such a sweet guy; he probably got lots of gifts from admirers even though he didn't have a girlfriend. As she watched the lights in Kaiba Corp slowly turn out, save for the top floor, she decided to deal with her other problem. She was meeting up with Téa the next day to go shopping. The trouble was she had to meet her at the university campus, which was more like a small city of its own than a school. She had gotten directions, but they didn't really make a lot of sense. She'd asked Joey, but he had a horrible sense of direction and Tristan's directions hadn't been much better. Having the directions written out on a piece of paper was no use to her; she needed visual landmarks or a guide. Téa and Tristan were still in class when her bus would drop her off at their campus and Yugi and Duke didn't have classes that day so they wouldn't even be there. It left her with only one option. Serenity groaned as she stretched to reach her laptop and wrote Seth a message for him to reply to when he got home.

_Seth,_

_ So, I was wondering if you could do me a favour. I have to go to your school tomorrow and the directions I got to the department I need to go to aren't that helpful. I was wondering if you could draw me a map or something? I'm sorry, it's just I know I'll get lost._

_Kisa_

Serenity hit send and then opened her bag to finish the assigned reading she had to do. It was English Literature and she had to read _Pride and Prejudice,_ she liked the book so it wasn't too much of a chore to read. She lay there for hours, reading and occasionally making light pencil marks in spots that she could use in the essay she would have to write about it later. Finally her computer did the chirping sound she had been waiting for.

_Kisa,_

_ I thought about it and I decided that I can't draw you a map, it wouldn't be very helpful to you. So I propose a better solution. Here's my cell phone number __(03)3436-6661. Phone me when you arrive at the campus and I'll try to guide to from there._

_Seth_

Serenity read the words a few times, unable to believe it. She had Seth's number. Instead of emailing him back she signed in on her messenger, she preferred the quicker responses she received that way.

_Kisa: So does that mean you're meeting me there?_

_Seth: No, I finish class at 1:30 on Fridays; I'll already be at work. I'll try to guide you over the phone as best as a can, that way I'll know where you're going and if you're following the directions._

_Kisa: At work? Won't you get in trouble for being on the phone?_

_Seth: No it should be fine, I'll make something up._

_Kisa: Oh, ok. My number is (054)263-5755 so you'll know it's me who's calling._

Serenity added 'Seth' into her contacts, already looking forward to the next day when she would actually be able to hear his voice. Then a thought struck her, Seth didn't want them to meet yet, but he didn't seem to have a problem with giving out other information.

_Kisa: Seth, do you have a mailbox at __the __University?_

_Seth: Of course, we all do. Why?_

_Kisa: What's your mailbox number?_

_Seth: I'd have to look, I don't use it often. Again; why?_

_Kisa: I have something I want to give you, __but I don't have any way__ of giving it to you. I thought this would be the best way._

Seth was silent for a while, she was almost afraid he was going to ignore her when finally the words _Seth is writing a message_ appeared.

_Seth: You have to use my student number, they don't use names there. It gets too complicated. My number is 96268. Give them that number and they'll put it in my slot. May I ask what it is you have?_

_Kisa: Nothing special really, just a charm I had bought at the shrine I went to on New Years. I know you're not really superstitious but I thought it wouldn't hurt to have._

_Seth: Alright. Thank you. Now, time for bed. I'll talk to you tomorrow._

_Kisa: Goodnight, sweet dreams _

_Seth: Good night._

* * *

The next day couldn't go by fast enough, all Serenity wanted was to leave class, go see Téa and hear Seth's voice. Finally the day was over and Serenity raced to change into her jeans and head over to campus.

When she got there she just stared at the scene before her. The university was a mix of modern and classic architecture, there was a great, blue gate that reminded her very much of the shrine and she thought she could even spot a traditional archery range and a dojo. The rest of the school had tall, towering buildings with a sparkling, mirrored finish. In awe Serenity took out her phone, suddenly glad she could call Seth, if the directions she had didn't make sense before they certainly wouldn't help now.

She dialed the number and was surprise that she only had to wait two rings before she heard agravelly and almost familiar voice on the other end.

[Hello?]

"Seth?" Serenity asked, the nagging feeling that she had heard his voice before filled her, she thought perhaps she might have dialed the wrong number. She heard him mutter something to someone on his end, excusing himself she assumed, before he returned.

[Kisa, hello. So tell me, where are you and where do you need to go?]

"I'm at the front gate, the blue one," she said marveling at how much warmer his voice sounded. That feeling of recognition died, though his voice still sounded a little rougher than she had imagined. "I need to get to the theatre in the Daidouji building."

[Alright, head into the first building to your left, it's the Hiromoto building, you'll need to walk through that and on the other side is Daidouji. You'll have to go up a flight of stairs and they're connected by a sky walk…] Serenity followed his instructions and in no time found herself outside the theatre doors.

"Thank you so much!" she gushed and if he had been there she would have given him a tight hug. She heard him give a small chuckle on the other end and could hear the smile in his voice.

[It was no trouble. Have fun with your friend, I'll talk to you later. Good bye.]

"Bye!"

Serenity only had to wait a few minutes before Téa was finished and out with her. They greeted each other with a hug and set off.

"So I was thinking of getting something a little sexy to wear when I go out to dinner with Yugi. Want to help me pick it out?" Téa asked.

"Sure. Oh, before we leave campus can we stop by the student administrations office? I need to go to the mail boxes."

"The mail boxes? Why?"

"I have Seth's student number," Serenity almost squealed. "I can give him that charm I bought for him for New Year and when I figure out what I want to give him for Valentine's day I can give it to him, isn't that awesome?"

"Very," Téa replied with a laugh and she led her young friend to where she wanted to go. "It's too bad everything is done by student number here otherwise we could find out what his real name is." Serenity nodded as she approached the main desk and handed the charm to the person working there.

"Can you put this is box 96268 please?" she asked. They nodded and took the package to the back. "Thank you!" she called before heading back out with Téa, she couldn't wait to see what Seth would say.

* * *

**I am _so_ sorry this took me so long to do! I got into a huge Avatar kick and finished _After There Was Oma and Shu_ and started a new Avatar story, _The Life of a Bee (aka Tigerswan)_. Here it finally is, I'll try to update quicker, you have been so patient my readers!**


	5. Daisies and Dragons

"Oh, how about this one?" Serenity suggested, lifting up the white and blue slip. Téa examined the item with a critical eye.

"It's nice, but the colour seems too _innocent_ to me." Serenity riffled through the rack again and pulled out the same slip in black and pink, once again lifting it for her friend's approval.

"This one better?"

"Perfect! You're so great to shop with," Téa told her with a hug as she took the hanger and the pair made their way to the register. "So what are you going to do for Seth?"

"I'm not sure, I make chocolate for everyone. I was thinking I should make him chocolate too." Serenity frown doubtfully, she wasn't sure if that seemed too generic, it was tradition though.

"I love the chocolates you make, what shapes are you going to do this year?" They left the store and headed towards the small shop Serenity bought all her chocolate making supplies from.

"Well, I did hearts last year so I was thinking of maybe doing flowers this year. I saw a cute mold last time I was here that made lollipop chocolates. I thought that might be neat."

"Definitely," Téa agreed, holding the shop's door open for her friend. "Did you want my help choosing one?"

"No, it's alright. I have a pretty good idea what I'm looking for and my mom's work is pretty close by so I'll go there and go home with her. Thank you, though."

"No problem, I'll see you later. Looking forward to your chocolates!" Serenity smiled and waved as Téa left and went about looking for that cute daisy mold she had seen. It took her a while, but she was eventually able to find it. She was just about to bring it to the register to pay when another mold caught her eye. It was bigger than the molds she usually bought; it only fit two shapes on the sheet instead of the usual five or six. She picked it up and remembered something small from months ago.

~flashback~

Seth,

What sort of stuff are you interested in? What's your favourite animal? I like baking, art and my favourite animals are cats and monkeys. What about your family? Do you have brothers or sisters? How about pets? I have an older brother and a pet cat.

Kisa

_Serenity wanted to get to know her partner better, she didn't want their relationship to just be her complaining about her life all the time, but Seth was so tight lipped about his personal life._

Kisa,

I work a lot and go to school, so I don't have much free time, though I do enjoy playing duel monsters. I don't really have a favourite animal, I suppose I like dragons if that counts. I don't have any pets, but I have a younger brother. Why do you want to know all of this?

Seth

~end flashback~

Serenity smiled as she took the mold with the dragons and her daisy one to the register, they had come so far since then. It had been slow at first, but now Serenity considered Seth one of her dearest friends, and even though she wouldn't say it out loud, she loved him.

* * *

[Hello?]

"Hi Seth!" Serenity said cheerfully, her phone resting in the crook of her neck while she finished the chocolate daisies for her brother and friends. "What're you up to?"

[Not much, I just got home from work. You?]

"Making my Valentine chocolates, I'm just about done. How was work? Busy?" she asked, starting to wash the dishes she had used making the milk chocolate daisies.

[Fairly busy, though I have had busier days. Do you make chocolates for everyone? I thought the tradition was to make chocolate for your boyfriend or the person you wanted to be your boyfriend.]

"Yup, I make chocolates for everyone. It's more personal than just store bought chocolates, besides I don't have a boyfriend and my friends look forward to my chocolates every year. So, do you have plans on Valentines day?"

[It's this Sunday, right? I'll be home in all likelihood. I have some studying to do for school.]

"Do you get a lot of chocolates and stuff?" Serenity asked, trying to keep the jealousy out of her voice. Setting the last of the dishes to air dry, she made her way up to her room, pausing to give her mother a quick hug and collapsed on her bed with a sigh, happily listening to Seth's voice.

[Why do you think I plan on staying home?] he asked with a small laugh. [For reasons I cannot even begin to fathom girls seem to want me. Not that I've ever shown an iota of interest. I don't eat much of the chocolate I'm given. I give some to my brother and give the rest to a local orphanage. The kids appreciate the treat more than I do.]

"Why don't you eat any of it?" Serenity worried that maybe he didn't like chocolate and she'd have to find something else to do for him.

[I always get milk chocolate, which is fine in small amounts but I prefer white chocolate.]

"Oh, okay. Yeah I guess if you don't really like it to begin with, then getting a lot is no fun. Too bad you're not a girl," she added with a laugh, partially out of relief that she could still give Seth chocolates. "On White Day girls get white chocolate and other stuff that's white."

[I've honestly never paid much attention to either holiday before. You'll have to teach me. Regardless, it's getting late. We've both got school tomorrow.]

"Are you going to be at school on Friday?" Serenity asked quickly.

[Not Friday, but for a few hours on Saturday afternoon I will be.]

"Check your locker, okay?"

[Alright, I will.]

"Promise?" she pressed.

[I promise, will you go to sleep now?]

"Yes," she said with a laugh. "Sweet dreams, Seth."

[Sweet dreams, Kisa.]

* * *

"Serenity! Where are you rushing off to?" One of her classmates asked as Serenity rushed to change her shoes and put on her coat.

"I need to give Seth his Valentines chocolate today or I'll miss him," she replied and gave a small wave before running to catch the bus. Serenity held the blue box gently on her lap. She had stayed up late the night before to finish the two dozen white chocolate dragons and was thankful it was winter so she didn't have to worry about them melting in the locker.

"Can you put this is box 96268 please?" she asked, carefully sliding over her package. As she turned and headed to the bus stop that would take her home she thought she saw Kaiba from the corner of her eye, but when she turned to look there wasn't anyone there.

"Hi Seth!" Serenity almost squealed when, for a change, he phoned her that night.

[Just when I think you can't amaze me...]

"Do you like them?" she asked, the gentleness of his voice made her smile.

[Of course I do, you listen to me and remember even the smallest things I tell you. No one else does that. I'm glad that our schools did this program otherwise I might have never gotten to know you.]

"I feel the same way." For the first time Seth didn't insist on bedtime and the pair talked late into the night, Serenity was drifting off to sleep, listening to Seth as he talked about nothing in particular. She was just on the edge of sleep, in that half state where you're too close to sleep to talk, but still awake enough to be slightly aware what's being said. Though she heard it clearly, she almost didn't believe it.

[I love you.]

* * *

**I am so sorry this took me so long to have up. I've been super busy, but now I've got some time so I'm going to be doing a lot of catch up writing. _Three Guys_ is nearing the end, only two more chapters left and then you'll have to keep an eye out for the story from Seto's POV _Resignation._ Also, if you're reading my _Life of a Bee_ story it's on a temporary break until the Avatar extras for book two come out. If you're a fan of Avatar, Powerpuff Girls or Full Metal Panic! please check out my other stories along with a new Avatar story, my first AU. If you're more into reading my Silentship stories check out _The One That Got Away_, though fair warning it's a bit of a downer. As usual, please review ^-^**

**Links to where you can see what the chocolates Serenity made:**

**chocomolds (dot) com/CM239 (dot) html - Daisy**

**chocomolds (dot) com/CMI027 (dot) html - Dragon**


	6. The Gifts

**Okay, so first a little note about the previous chapter since I knew at least a few of you mentioned it. In theory Seto telling Serenity he loved her would be too early since they've only been talking since September and don't know who the other is. But! *~*SPOILER!~*~ Seto knows more than you think he does. All unanswered questions will be answered in the sequel _Resignation_ so I recommend reading that once you've finished this. ~*~ END SPOILER~*~ Also, Seto believes 'Kisa' is asleep and therefore didn't hear his spur of the moment 'I love you' and you can bet Serenity isn't going to be letting him know she heard him.**

**Enough of that, go on and enjoy the second last chapter!**

* * *

The next month flew by, in no time it was March. Serenity's graduation, and the formal she'd finally get to meet Seth at, were looming closer.

"I still have no dress!" Serenity lamented to Téa and Mai that evening while the trio watched movies to celebrate the nearing end of the school year.

"Hon, the formal is in April, you still haven't found anything?" Mai asked, pausing the movie so they could talk.

"No, nothing. I'm not sure how formal I have to dress, where to find one or even if I have the money."

"I thought your mom was going to buy you a dress," Téa said.

"No, she said she was going to give me a gift certificate to get my hair and nails done."

"So how were you supposed to get a dress then?"

"I've been saving my money, but I just don't know if it's enough."

"How about we go shopping after your entrance exams done? Téa and I can help you pick something out," the older woman offered.

"Okay, end of March then," Serenity agreed, she was glad that her two friends would be going even though they had to buy tickets. She really wanted them to meet Seth.

"No problem. Now, let's finish this movie."

* * *

[Hello Kisa.]

"Hey Seth. What's up?" Serenity asked shoving away her textbooks. She was done cramming for tonight.

[Just giving my nightly call. Are you alright? You sound like you're stressed.]

"Just my entrance exam. Well, that and I still need to find a dress for the formal our schools are doing."

[What school are you trying to get in?]

"I'm hoping to get into the Tokyo University of the Arts. It's a great school, but very prestigious. I not only have to do my entrance exam, but I also need to do a portfolio of my skills to try and get a scholarship."

[Does your mother not make enough money?]

"She does, and I know she'd probably be more than happy to help me pay for it. But because I'd have to go to Tokyo I'd need to find a place to live and pay for school. I figure if I get a scholarship then at least Mom has less to worry about. If I don't get the scholarship then I'll probably go to Domino University since they have a pretty good arts program."

[Work hard, I have faith in your abilities.]

"Thanks," she smiled, already feeling a little of her stress melt away. Talking to Seth was always good for her.

[So why have you not found a dress yet?]

"I'm not sure how formal I'm supposed to dress," she admitted.

[From my understanding it's a black tie event. I will be wearing a tux, as I'm assuming most of the men will. Women's clothes vary, but evening gowns and such are acceptable. Does that help?]

"Yeah, a lot actually. Now I just need to go shopping with my friends."

[May I offer a suggestion?]

"Sure," Serenity agreed, thrilled that Seth was being such a help.

[It's a bit of a trek, but in Kyoto there is a shop called Kuradia Co. They will have exactly what you need. Are you willing to go that far? It's a couple hours by train.]

"I don't mind, we were planning to make it a day trip anyway. Thank you so much."

[Don't mention it. When you go tell them your name and they'll be sure to help you. Oh, and before I forget, I left something in my locker at school. Would you be able to go down and pick it up for me?]

"Sure, but why can't you? You'll have it much sooner that way."

[I don't need it in person, if you could just follow the instructions it comes with I won't have to worry.]

"Oh, okay. I'll pick it up on Monday then."

[What's the date today, the thirteenth? Could you get it tomorrow actually? I'm sorry, but it's very time sensitive.]

"Um, yeah I can do that," Serenity agreed, her curiosity piqued.

[Thank you. Time for bed now. I'll talk to you tomorrow.]

"No problem, good night!"

[Good night.]

* * *

Serenity walked the now familiar path to Seth's locker the next afternoon, curious as to what it was he had forgotten.

"Can I get the item from locker 96268 please?" Serenity chirped.

"Name?"

"Ser- I mean Kisa," she corrected herself remembering that Seth didn't know her real name. The boy at the desk flipped through a few papers and read, glancing up at Serenity as he did so before nodding.

"Be right back," he told her as he got up. Soon he returned with a medium sized box wrapped in white paper. "Here you go," he handed her the box. "And this was under it."

"Thank you," Serenity replied taking the box and envelope, more than a little confused. She walked to the bus stop, curious about the package. Perhaps Seth wanted her to mail something? She assumed the envelope contained instructions on whatever is was he wanted her to do, so she sat down at the bus stop bench and carefully opened it to find a letter.

_Kisa,_

Thank you for going to pick this up. If I had been able I would have done this in person. Don't open the box yet, wait until you get home and please call me before you open it. Don't worry about my work, I'll be fine to take a short call. Talk to you soon.

Seth

Serenity frowned and put the note in her purse, now very curious as to what was going on. Especially about how the letter was written, it was like Seth knew she was going to pick the box up for him, but he said he had forgotten it. She sighed and got on the bus that had just pulled up. She couldn't wait till she got home. Right now she had all too many questions and not enough answers.

* * *

"Hi Mom!" Serenity called as she walked in the door, Kaiya looked out from the kitchen and smiled.

"Hello, dear. Supper will be ready in about thirty minutes." Serenity nodded and pulled out her cell phone as she raced upstairs, package under her arm while she speed dialing Seth. She paced her room anxiously while the phone rang. The curiosity she had faced on the bus ride home was killing her.

[Hello?]

"Hi Seth," Serenity answered breathlessly while he gave a small laugh.

[Kisa, I take it you're home?]

"Yup, just got in the door. So what's this package about? It's been driving me crazy," she almost whined causing her friend to laugh again.

[Go ahead. Open it.]

Serenity happily tucked her phone into the crook of her neck while she unwrapped the package. Once she had removed the last of the white paper she gasped.

[Happy White day... Do you like it?]

"Seth, how- I mean- Seth, they're beautiful," she breathed and glanced at the calendar, she had completely forgotten about White Day. She wasn't seeing Joey or his friends until the next day so she hadn't recieved any White Day gifts from them yet. In her lap sat the forty seven piece professional brush set. She had dreamed of owning brushes of this quality but never thought she'd be able to. Delicately she opened the case and stroked pure white handles, making her even more speechless. Most brushes came with black handles or other similarly dark colours. Sometimes they were just plain wood. They were rarely, if ever, white. They had to be custom ordered.

[I wanted to give you something in return for the gifts you've given me.]

"But Seth, how could you afford these? Normally brushes like this are like 65,000 yen. To get them custom ordered..."

[I was very lucky to find them online for a very reasonable price. I've been saving for some time.]

Serenity frowned, something about his voice didn't seem right… How long had it taken him to save? Could she really accept this, knowing how expensive it must be?

"T-thank you, thank you so much," she gushed, pushing the thoughts from her mind. "If you were here I'd give you the biggest hug in the world!"

[We'll just have to wait until I see you then.]

Serenity nodded eagerly, forgetting that he couldn't see her. Just then she heard her mom's voice call up the stairs.

"Serenity! Dinner's ready!"

"I have to go, Mom says it's dinner time. Can I call you later?"

[I'll call you when I'm home from work, enjoy your dinner and get some rest. You have an entrance exam in a few days.]

* * *

"This is going to be so much fun," Téa said excitedly as the three women boarded the train for Kyoto.

"Yeah, I've never been to Kyoto before. After we find my dress we should look around," Serenity suggested as they found seats.

"Sounds like a plan, so long as we're back to catch the train before eight. I know some of us have to get up early. So," Mai said, changing the subject quickly and turning to Serenity. "How do you think you did on the entrance exams?"

"Alright, the questions were all things I studied and there were only a few that I wasn't sure of. I'll find out the results a few days before the formal and then I'll know if I qualified for the scholarship or not."

"And if you don't get the scholarship?" Téa asked gently.

"I'll have a place at Domino University, the one in Tokyo was just my first choice," she shrugged. She would be disappointed, but it wasn't so bad. Besides, her friends were at Domino University.

The train ride passed easily. The three women played a couple rounds of duel monsters. Serenity just borrowed the deck from whoever wasn't playing during her turns. She wasn't terrible, but she knew she could never be as invested in the game as her brother was.

"I think our stop is next," Téa told them, glancing out the window. They gathered their things and got off the train together. Serenity wanted to look around Kyoto, but she knew business came first.

"Okay, so I guess let's get going," she said, taking charge. They had wisely all worn comfortable clothes and shoes for the day of walking, feeling glad when they entered the shop. On the train both of her friends had shown her pictures of their dresses. Téa's was a sweet and simple pink dress with gathering around the bust and a flowing skirt. Mai's was the complete opposite, vibrant purple mermaid cut with a plunging neckline and lacing up the back. Both dresses suited her friends well and she hoped their mixed tastes would be an asset in helping her find her own.

"How about something like this?" Mai asked lifting up a black slinky number with a corset-like ribbon lace up front.

"It looks pretty, I'll try it on." A shop worker came by and got a room ready for them while they added a few more dresses to the pile.

"Okay, go and try something on now," Téa urged. Serenity laughed and tried on the dresses. Some of them, she knew as soon as they were on that they weren't right for her.

"Well, come out so we can see some of them," Mai ordered from the other side of the curtain. Serenity changed into the slinky black dress she had liked and stepped out.

"I don't know how I feel about this one," she told them thoughtfully. The black looked too stark against her skin and there were slits on both sides that went up to her thigh. She also realized once it was one that it was really low cut in the front.

"You're right, doesn't suit you at all," her friends agreed. "Go try on something else." Serenity obeyed, carefully hanging up the black dress and changing into the minty green one Téa had chosen before stepping out again, standing on the platform and looking in the mirrors. It was captivating for sure, lacy glitter with ribbon ties along the back. The neck line was a modest scoop with spaghetti straps and the skirt had lightweight tulle falling in gentle folds over the under slip that showed off her legs from the knee down.

"That one looks amazing!" Téa exclaimed, circling her friend while Mai nodded in approval. Serenity was just about to voice her agreement when she spotted another dress at the back of the shop. She stepped off the platform and made her way over, lifting the hanger to her body to see how it might look on her.

"What've you got there?" Mai asked, coming up behind her.

"I really, really like this," Serenity said turning around so her friends could see. "The white doesn't look too wedding-y does it?"

"Try it on and see." Serenity tried on the white gown and stepped out onto the platform again. Experimentally she coiled her hair up on her head with one hand to see how it would look with her hair up.

"It's perfect," she breathed. The dress was a white A-line with a floor length skirt. There was a sky blue sash around her hips with blue beading along the top folds of the skirt and edges of the bodice in vine-like patterns. There was boning in the bodice, keeping her posture perfect, but not so much that it was corseted and she loved that it had just a simple zipper in the back. Best of all while the green dress would need a bit of alteration to fit just right the white one fit her perfectly, as though it was made for her.

"How much is it?" Téa asked reasonably, Serenity searched, but she couldn't find a tag.

"I'm not sure, we'll ask," she said going back into the change room to put on her street clothes again. "If it's out of my price range I'll buy the green one, that one looked really nice too." She knew that she had saved up enough money for the green one. The three girls made their way to the front desk; Mai carried the green dress while Serenity carried the white one.

"Hi, umm my name is Kisa," she told the clerk remembering that Seth had told her to give them her name.

"Ah yes, we were told you'd be coming by today. Is that the dress you picked out?" the clerk asked politely.

"Um, well how much is it first? I- I don't know if I have enough," she admitted. The clerk looked surprised.

"You don't need to pay. An arrangement has already been worked out."

"What?" Serenity asked, surprised. How could Seth do that? He had already given her such an expensive gift, how could he afford to buy her this dress as well. Then something clicked. Seth always got home very late from work and this shop was a small privately owned business. Perhaps Seth took the train everyday here and if he worked here surely he got discounts, especially since he had told her that his work had belonged to his father before he passed away. "Well, let me at least pay for as much as I can," she said. She didn't want Seth to think she was taking advantage of him. The dress was probably really expensive. The woman on the other side of the counter smiled kindly and nodded.

"That's fine dear." Serenity handed over the envelope that had her savings from the past few months of babysitting and allowance. It was a few thousand yen and hopefully enough to cover half the cost. The woman wrote out a receipt for Serenity and a second one she assumed was for Seth while another clerk carefully packed the gown in a dress box for her. "Have a good day, we hope to see you again soon!" Serenity waved and carried the box in the large bag they had given her while the girls went sightseeing, a smile on her face the entire time.

* * *

[Hello?]

"Hi Seth!" Serenity said, happily dancing around her room wearing the dress. She had just gone and shown her mother, who loved it, though she had wondered about the cost. "Why didn't you tell me the real reason you were sending me to that shop?"

[I wanted to surprise you.]

"Well you did, I still paid half though. I would've felt awful taking advantage of you. The dress I bought was probably more expensive than I had originally planned to get."

[What does it look like?]

"Can't tell, it's a surprise."

[How will we spot each other at the formal then?]

"Hmm, you're right. Well it's hard to explain, it's long and white with blue," Serenity said, looking at herself in the mirror and playing with the skirt.

[I propose we find each other based on our corsage and boutonnière. Are you familiar with irises?]

"I think so, I can always ask Mom or my brother. He said he was going to buy my flower as a graduation gift."

[Well tell them you want a blue iris, it's not a very common flower so we should be able to find each other relatively easy.]

"Blue iris?" Serenity asked with a laugh. "Pun not intended? Okay, I will."

[Good. I know you don't have school anymore, but I need to get up early for work. I shall see you soon. Good night.]

"Night!"

* * *

**Whew, well that was a long chapter. Hope you enjoyed it and stay tuned for the thrilling conclusion! I've been wanting to write this last chapter since I first thought up the idea lol. Also, since I clearly haven't mentioned it enough yet, _Resignation_ will be this story from Seto's pov and the events that happen after the conclusion. The first chapter or prologue will be posted on the SAME DAY as the final chapter of _Three Guys_, so if you haven't already add me to your Author Alerts so you'll know when it's posted.**

**As usual PLEASE review. I update much faster when I have nice reviews to prompt me into it.  
**


	7. Blue Iris White Dress

**So here it is, the last chapter. I first want to say thank you for the reviews, I hope that even though this stoy is now complete you'll continue to give feedback. Eun-Jung's review really motivated me to put this chapter out as soon as I could and I'll admit I had some trouble writing everything that lead up to the meeting.**

**Anyways, read on and please let me know what you thought of it.**

* * *

Serenity woke early on the day of the formal, before her alarm even went off. Her body was just too excited to stay asleep. She quickly got out of bed and made chocolate chip pancakes for herself and her mom.

"Well this is a surprise," Kaiya said with a laugh as she sat down at the table. Serenity brought her a cup of coffee before returning to the pancakes. "Who are you and what did you do with my daughter?"

"Mom!" Serenity laughed, sliding the pancakes onto their plates and making her way to the table. "Today's an important day and I'm excited."

"Yes, I know. I'll drive you to your hair appointment and we can get our nails done together," the older woman replied, digging into her breakfast.

"Y-you mean you don't have to work?" Serenity had accepted that her mother was often very busy with work, even now that Kaiba had stopped using her as his personal assistant and now was solely his PR she was still a very busy woman.

"No dear, I had mentioned to Mr. Kaiba that this dinner was coming up and what I wanted to do for you. He told me I could take the day so I'm all yours."

"Mom that's great! This day just keeps getting better." Once they finished breakfast Kaiya sent her daughter upstairs to change while she did the dishes. Serenity wore comfortable clothes; sweatpants and a zip up hoodie so she wouldn't have to worry about messing up her hair or nails later.

* * *

She spent all morning at the hairdresser's getting her hair done. Her mother had gone out for a bit while she waited - leaving Serenity at the mercy of a short, round faced woman named Mayu. She gave Serenity a trim, dried her hair and was halfway through curling it when Kaiya returned.

"Where'd you go, Mom?" Serenity asked, glancing at her quickly.

"Just went to pick up something, you'll see." Serenity nodded, promptly receiving a scolding from Mayu for moving her head.

Finally, after what felt like forever, Serenity was handed a mirror and Mayu spun the chair around. Her bangs had begun to grow long, she decided that she liked the way the long piece looked so she let it continue to grow and it hung nicely in front of her face. The little tendrils of hair she had framing her face were curled into soft ringlets while the rest had been pulled into a bun with a tiny braid running through it on either side.

"It's beautiful, thank you," Serenity gushed, looking happily at Mayu who smiled and added a few sparkles.

"I'm glad you like it, Hon." Serenity continued to admire her hair while her mother paid.

"Okay, time to get our nails done." Serenity thanked Mayu one last time before joining her mother.

"So where are we going to get our nails done?" Serenity asked once they were in the car.

"Mrs. Aizawa from work recommended a nice little studio, so I thought we'd go there," she said with a smile. "Oh and that reminds me, open the glove compartment." Serenity looked at her mother confused but did as she was told. In there was a small black box tied with a bow. "Go ahead, open it."

"Mom, it's beautiful," she gasped lifting the small silver ring from the box. In the centre was a larger diamond cut into the shape of a star with smaller diamonds along the side. Along the inside of a band the words 'You are my shining star' were engraved.

"My parents gave me a ring when I finished high school," Kaiya said with a smile. "I thought I should do the same for you." Serenity hugged her mother tightly when they stopped at a light and thanked her before sliding the ring onto the third finger of her right hand and admired it. They drove in a comfortable silence for the rest of the ride, happily listening to the radio.

"Alright this is it," Kaiya said as she finally pulled into a parking lot. Mother and daughter got out of the car and made their way to the small shop. The walls were painted a lovely peach colour and although there were only three manicure tables and pedicure chairs the shop looked very nice.

"You must be the Kawais for 2 o'clock," a tall woman with long, dark hair said, approaching them.

"Yes, I'm Kaiya and this is my daughter, Serenity."

"Perfect, I'm Isuzu and I'll be doing your nails while Hitomi does Serenity's." A second woman joined them, she had short pixie styled hair and a bright smile.

"So what colours are you wanting for your nails?" Hitomi asked as she led Serenity to her chair.

"Um, I was thinking of getting a French manicure with blue instead of white?"

"Sure, you just have a seat." Serenity sat and put her hands on the table, watching the way Hitomi expertly filed and buffed her nails. They engaged in small talk and Serenity told her about the formal she was going to. "Okay, now gently dip your fingers in this bowl," Hitomi told her after she had finished with the polish. "It's ice water, it will dry your nails quicker." Serenity did as she was told, shivering as her fingers hit the cold water, but as Hitomi said when she took her hands out of the water her beautiful blue tipped nails with a touch of silver were no longer at risk of being smudged.

Serenity and her mother were then moved over to the pedicure chairs, while her feet soaked in the warm water and Kaiya chatted with Isuzu, Serenity slipped off into a daydream.

_She descended the wide staircase feeling like Cinderella at the ball. She could spot her brother and friends, but no sign of Seth. Then, suddenly someone touched her hand and there he was. He was tall and handsome, with beautiful blue eyes._

"You look beautiful," he whispered in her ear as he lead her to the dance floor.

"Serenity, what do you think of this colour?" Kaiya asked, jerking Serenity from her daydream. She looked at the polish her mother held. It was a dark red, something she never would have imagined her mother wearing. "It's called 'Short and Sassy' from the Reto Diva collection. Much too bold for my hands, but I thought for my toes, why not?"

"I like it, it's too bad you can't wear colours like that to work."

"It's just not professional. Mr. Kaiba asked that the women not have polished nails because he doesn't want to have to hear anyone complaining about chipping, though those of us on the upper floors are allowed to have French manicures and neutral colours." Serenity looked at her own nails, while she had a French manicure she knew the sapphire blue wouldn't fly and her toes were fully painted in the same shade. It was probably the artist in her, but she loved colours and couldn't imagine not being able to wear them. 

* * *

Once the two women were home Kaiya went to fix a light lunch. Serenity picked up the mail, placing most of the envelopes on the coffee table for her mother to look at later when she noticed an official looking brown envelope with her name on it.

"I'm just making sure I have everything ready for tonight," Serenity told her mother as she headed upstairs, the envelope clutched tightly in her hand. The older woman nodded and Serenity hurried to her room, wanting to know what the letter had to say.

_Dear Serenity Wheeler,_

It is a pleasure to inform you that the Committee of University Scholarships has selected you to be one of the ten students to receive The University of Tokyo Scholarship. _ This will cover the enrollment fee, tuition and living expenses (up to 126,000 yen a month) for four consecutive years. This award is based on your academic excellence, contributions to the community and the portfolio of work you submitted._

We look forward to having you at our school.

Sincerely, Kenji Watanabe

Vice Chancellor

Serenity sank to her bed and read over the brief letter again and read the second paper that went into details on how she would claim the scholarship. She couldn't believe it, she got the scholarship.

She reached for her phone, planning to call Seth when suddenly she realized something. Her mother, the woman who was going to pay for what her scholarship didn't cover was downstairs while her brother and one of her closest friends were probably on their way over and the first person she wanted to tell was Seth. She remembered something Téa had told her ages ago.

_"Téa, you've known Yugi for a really long time, right?" Serenity asked over their milkshakes._

"Yeah, forever almost."

"And you had feelings for him for a while too right?"

"Mhm, a couple years."

"Well when did you know that he was the one for you and it wasn't just a crush or friendship?" Serenity asked, playing with her straw.

"When I got the role of Odette in Swan Lake," her friend answered without hesitation.

"That's random."

"No, see I knew Yugi was the one for me then because getting that role was really important to me and he was the first person I wanted to tell. He was my first call.  
Wondering about Tristan?" she asked.

"Yeah," Serenity admitted with a sigh. "I like him, I like him a lot and I just wanted to know how I'd, well, **know** that he is the one for me. I think he might be. He makes me laugh and is sweet and I know everyone who's close to me likes him as well."

"You'll know when the time comes to make that first call if he's the one for you. If Joey or your mom or Mai and I are your first call then you just might not be ready for love yet. Trust me, the first call is always right."

Serenity sighed, that had been nearly two years ago that she'd had that conversation with Téa. At the time she had honestly felt that Tristan might be the one and that she'd someday be Mrs. Taylor even though they had never 'officially' proclaimed their relationship. Over time however, things changed just like they always did and while she still loved Tristan dearly she felt the same way about him as she did Mai, Téa and the others. He was a very close friend.

Her first call was someone else entirely and that was when it hit Serenity fast and hard, she had fallen in love with Seth. She admitted that she liked him and cared about him, she had even wondered if she might love him, but she had thought of love in the way most girls her age did. It was puppy love. She'd be the first to admit that she had loved Tristan, but she now knew that it was puppy love and while she thought that she might 'love' Seth she assumed it was puppy love as well. Perhaps on some level she was afraid of truly being in love, her mother had loved her father once and look how that turned out.

Serenity sighed and shook her head, clearing her thoughts. Quietly she slid her letter under her pillow, she'd tell Seth tonight when she met him and tell everyone else in the morning. Making her way downstairs Serenity smiled and chatted away about what she knew would be going on that night while she ate what her mom had made for her and waited for Mai and Joey to come.

Serenity sat still and patiently let Mai help her with her make up and get dressed. She posed for numerous pictures with her brother and friend before heading out, all the while keeping her exciting news to herself.

Sitting down to dinner with her friends was nice, she enjoyed catching up with everyone and seeing them all dressed up, but the entire time she was keeping an eye out for the elusive blue iris. Finally she was able to excuse herself and go in search of Seth while the lights dimmed and the dancing began.

Walking through the crowd she looked at everyone's boutinniere, searching for the blue iris. Seth had been right, it was a rare flower. She saw plenty of roses, lilies and a few white irises, but no blue ones. Suddenly she saw it, or at least she hoped it was it. She was passing the balcony and noticed a black jacket draped over the edge with a blue flower.

"Excuse me, but is that a blue iris?" Serenity asked, slowly approaching the man. His back was to her, but the closer she got she was sure that it was an iris. "Seth?"

"Hello Kisa," he said and turned. Serenity could feel her heart pounding as she looked up into the face of the man she had unknowingly fallen in love with.

"I-I don't understand, what are you doing here?" she asked, there had to be some explanation on why Kaiba was there and why he had the same flower she did.

"I'm Seth."

"No... You couldn't be, it's impossible. You're joking."

"You make chocolates for your friends on Valentine's day, you bought me a Shobaihanjo at New Year's, you want to go to the Tokyo University of the Arts and- and you got that dress in Kyoto at the store I suggested, Kuradia Co." Serenity nervously touched the fold of her dress as he spoke.

"No. _No_, it can't be _you_. It just _can't_ be," she shook her head, refusing to believe it. There had to be some mistake. "You could never be Seth, he's kind and thoughtful and he cares about people. Y-you're selfish and arrogant and- and _mean_. All you care about is money and being the best duelist. Y-you've walked all over people to get what you want and never cared, Seth wouldn't _do_ that!" She felt her eyes sting, she turned away and began to leave.

"Kisa, Kisa wait. _Serenity_." Serenity froze at the sound of her name.

"Y-you know my name?" she asked dumbfounded. She didn't think Kaiba had ever learned her name during Battle City, they had really only spoken that once.

"Serenity, I'm sorry. You were expecting to see someone you trusted and met the enemy instead. The fault is mine."

"A-all this time you've known who I was?" she asked turning to face him, she was surprised to see a softness in his eyes that hadn't been there at Battle City.

"Yes," he admitted with a sigh.

"I'm so stupid! It was so obvious," she said angrily, cursing how naïve she had been. "You were always working late, my paint set and this dress... The way whenever I had a complaint about my mom working suddenly she-" Serenity gasped, feeling horrible. "I-I said awful, awful things about you... Why did you keep talking to me after that?"

"My being part of the mentoring program was mandatory. While my grades were more than sufficient to pass I was lacking in 'participation'. The head master of the school gave me strict instructions to be a faithful participant in the program and so I emailed you every night and listened to you talk about your problems and what was going on in your life. I even went so far as to tell you a few things about my own life. Perhaps it was the anonymity I had, knowing that you didn't know who I was and would talk without any biases clouding your judgment, but over time I found a friend in you and I grew to look forward to our talks."

"I-I know what you mean. I think we grew to depend on each other along the way... And you still accepted me for who I was, despite your relationship with my family." Serenity smiled in spite of herself, her mother's boss, her brother's nemesis and her most trusted friend were all the same person. If he could look past it all so could she. She could hear soft strains of music, the first slow song of the night had apparently begun.

_What if I told you it was all meant to be?  
Would you believe me, would you agree? _

"D-did you want to dance?"

"If you do," Kaiba replied as he slipped his jacket back on. Serenity nodded and he strode into the crowd with Serenity falling in step beside him. He took her hand in one of his own and placed his other on her waist while she stretched up to meet his shoulder.

"I'm not very good at dancing," she admitted softly.

"I will lead, all you have to do is follow."

_Its almost that feeling that we've met before so tell me that you don't think I'm crazy when I tell you love has come here and now._

"You want to know something?" she asked craning her neck to look up at him. He hummed in response which she took as a sign to continue. "I spent all day with my mother, getting our nails done and laughing and all I could think was..."

"That you finally got the mother/daughter relationship you desired?" Kaiba guessed.

"No, all I could think all afternoon was I couldn't wait to tell you that I got the scholarship."

"What?"

"Mhm. I got the letter this afternoon and it hit me; you're my first call. Ever since this program started you've been the person I wanted to share my news with first. There were times when I felt like things hadn't even happened yet until I told you. I know I'm probably not making much sense and right now I'm all excited about it so I'm not even making sense to me anymore," she said with a laugh. "But I just wanted you to know."

"Well, if I'm your 'first call', then who are you going to call first about this?" Kaiba asked as her pulled her into a tight hug. "Congratulations, you worked very hard for that. I would like to still be your- your friend after you've gone to Tokyo." Serenity smiled and inhaled the spicy scent of his cologne. Nothing happened like she imagined, but somehow that made it even better.

_Some people search a lifetime for a moment like this.  
Some people search forever for that one special kiss.  
I cant believe its happening to me.  
Some people wait a lifetime for a moment like this. _

* * *

**I know, the ending is a little cliched ^^". i had originally wanted it to be a bit more romantic, a kiss or something, but I decided that since I'm writing a sequel (which is posted now) then I can let their relationship build slowly because while Serenity believes she's in love with Seto, he's not at sure. As promised all unanswered questions from this story shall be addressed in full in _Resignation._ ((Apologies if there are any typos in this AN, my gecko is crawling all over my laptop^^"))  
**


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